Fix It - 1. Chapter 1

They made a mistake, and it took them a while to admit it – though not because people were slow to point it out. That happened from the beginning.

“It took me fifteen minutes to find this place,” one of their first visitors said. “Good thing it wasn’t an emergency.”

“This place is great,” another offered. “And I know you waited for years. But, geez, it’s a hike...”

“The old building was falling apart. Anyone could see that. But it sure was convenient.”

“People could find it – and fast.”

“Your old office had charm – crumbly charm, but still...”

“I always felt like I was walking into history.”

“This place is like a hospital.”

“We can leave out most of those,” Owen began, when they finally had a meeting. “Let’s focus on fast, and emergency, and hard to find.”

“But how much of that is true?” Elena asked. “How many people actually come into the station? They phone – or text.”

“Especially in an emergency,” Don added.

“There’s still the thought,” Ike put in.

“It’s garbage,” Rob insisted. “Sentiment.”

“No,” Jae countered. “There’s security in knowing the police station is right in the middle of everything. Even if you never use it.”

“That’s junk,” Rob almost repeated.

“We’re not that far from where we were,” Owen pointed out. “Two blocks off Main. A half dozen down Flower.”

“After you drive three blocks on College.”

“And the streets off Main are jammed with cars and trucks and anything else that fits.”

“And first you have to work your way through town.”

The objections came so quickly, Owen wasn’t really sure who was speaking. “It’s four blocks – total,” he defended. “Less than a quarter-mile.”

“With a mile-an-hour speed limit on Main,” Ike said laughing. “And a five minute traffic light on every corner.”

“The old station was right when you came into town,” Jae picked up.

“The first thing you saw,” Don supported. “This big, historic town hall.”

“And war memorial.”

“And landmark – right by the old church.”

“Which is huge. And Gothic. And no one can miss.”

“Just across from the commons.”

“And the gazebo.”

“And even if you find our new building,” Rob summed up, “on our new municipal campus – you still have to figure out which of the identical buildings it is – not the fire department or new town hall or the courthouse or mayor’s office...”

“I know the list,” Owen interceded, trying to head off its recitation. “And there are plenty of signs. Good. Big. Clear ones.”

“If you can read while you’re driving,” Don objected. “Without getting hit in the rear.”

“And losing time in an emergency.”

“At least, the parking’s easy,” Owen offered as another defense. “There’s a half-acre lot. Our old one had what – six spaces? And we needed all of them for ourselves. People had to hike down Main Street or sneak into the supermarket lot. And if there was a town meeting upstairs or a concert or a play...”

“We know – we know,” Rob admitted, also not wanting to hear the list. “But that doesn’t change anything. Heck, we’ve known for years that we needed to leave the old place, and we’ve only been here what? – under four months? So it’s definitely too soon to panic. Or even go around mumbling, ‘We hate this place.’”

“Hate’s a bit strong,” Jae allowed.

Owen grinned. “But Rob’s right. We need to be patient.”

“We’ve been patient, and everyone knows it,” Elena pushed on. “Some of us – the ones who listened to people from the start – have been waiting for all of those four months. So it’s time.”

“What do you want to do?” Owen asked.

That quieted everyone. Till finally, Ike said, “Well, we know we can’t ask for money.”

That made everyone laugh. “We sure can’t,” Rob agreed. “How much did this place cost? Two million? Double?”

“And that was for our part – and what was budgeted,” Owen confirmed. “The fire department alone cost more. So it’s got to be twelve or fourteen overall.”

“For what’s really not more space,” Jae said. “For us.”

“We didn’t ask for more,” Owen reminded them. “We mainly needed new equipment – and services. And you’ve got to admit, we got them. Plus, this place is better laid out. We each have our own offices.”

“Which are tiny.”

“It’s what we asked for.”

Elena interrupted. “Look, no one’s complaining about what we got. The space. The equipment. The services. We’d love it if it were just four blocks away.”

“Which we can’t do anything about,” Owen repeated.

“Can’t we?” Jae asked. “Our job has always been to solve problems. Why can’t we figure out this?”

Again, there was quiet. Then Elena seemed to wonder aloud, “Would they even let us go back?”

Owen laughed. “Technically, there’s no reason against it. No one’s in our old offices yet. No one has the money to fix them up. Though they’d all think we were crazy.”

“Who?” Jae shot.

“Start with the mayor and work down.”

“Now there’s a real ego boost for your police department,” Rob cracked. “Don’t support you local sheriff.”

“But if we got past that? ” Jae asked. “Somehow. Would they let us?”

Owen frowned. “I’d have to eat so much crap to even bring it up.”

“Is that all you’re afraid of?” Don joked. “Hell, that’s part of your job.”

“Yeah – humbling myself.”

“We don’t really want much,” Elena reasoned. “Just the chance to make something right.”

“And if we were the only ones asking,” Ike added, “we could legitimately be called ‘crazy.’”

“And a whole lot of things we’re no longer allowed to say,” Owen inserted.

Again, everyone laughed.

“But since this started with the people in town,” Ike went on, “before any of us even talked among ourselves...”

Ike suddenly interrupted himself, and laughed. Then he had to explain. “I’m sorry. I just got a picture of myself, back at my old desk. Fighting with the easiest things – like opening and closing the drawers.”

“And the old jail,” Jae tacked on. “Which makes a dungeon look new. I used to apologize to the drunks.”

“Then there’s the boiler...”

“And the radiators...”

“And the windows – which rattled every time a truck drove past.”

“When they weren’t letting in cold air.”

“...freezing...”

“And don’t even start on the bathrooms,” Elena added. “Which weren’t designed for women.”

“It was early equality,” Ike joked. “1869.”

“Did the original building even have plumbing?” Jae questioned.

“Did it ever?” Rob joked.

And everyone laughed again.

“The one thing that might help us,” Owen had to admit, “a little – is the money. As I said, no one has any to repair anything. So they can’t make plans.”

“At least, they can’t tear the place down,” Don pointed out. “It’s landmarked – inside and out.”

“And everyone loves the building – the architecture,” Ike went on.

“Still, that’s how our beautiful church next door became a day care center,” Elena picked up. “That old, elegant building. What a waste.”

“Are there any plans at all?” Don asked Owen. “I’ve only heard rumors.”

“There are thoughts,” Owen again allowed. “And they’re closer to dreams. They stop – instantly – when anyone even whispers ‘cash’.”

“What’re they thinking?” Ike asked.

“Mainly to wait and see.”

Once more, everyone laughed.

“Actually, the upstairs is easier,” Owen went on. “They want to keep it as a performing space – especially now that it has no longer conflicts with meetings.”

“And the arts never expect much,” Jae said smiling. “They’re happy in a barn.”

“But the hall has great acoustics,” Owen continued. “People come from Boston and New York to record. And it’s great to hear a concert there.”

No one disagreed.

“They’re also thinking of turning our old office into dressing rooms and a reception hall. All that would need is paint.”

“After hauling everything away.”

“They can probably get a grant for that,” Owen suggested. “And the town offices would be used for storage, along with those in the basement that already are.”

“So they have no real plans,” Elena summed up.

Owen had to agree.

“And if we found volunteers,” she offered, “and our own grants or donors – could we possibly go back? Since we really want to?”

Owen hesitated, seemingly to think. “If we built a case,” he slowly began, “a strong enough one, based on what other people are saying...” He paused again. “Maybe we could persuade them.” He quickly amended. “But do we really want to?”

He looked at each of them and, one-by-one, without seeming embarrassed or stupid, they all agreed. Including, eventually, Owen. Then he sighed.

“Oh, the crap I’ll have to eat for this.”